Overview
- A three-judge Supreme Court bench on November 7 directed states and Union Territories to remove stray dogs from schools, hospitals, universities and transport hubs and relocate them to designated shelters after sterilisation and vaccination, with no return to original locations and eight weeks for compliance reporting.
- Pune Municipal Corporation has begun surveys of institutions and is revising its action plan to balance public safety with humane treatment under the Animal Birth Control programme, according to its chief veterinary officer.
- Vijayawada Municipal Corporation plans notices instructing fencing and nodal officer appointments at public establishments and has identified 59 designated feeding zones as officials acknowledge limited kennels and funding constraints.
- Local capacity gaps are substantial, with Vijayawada reporting about 40,000 street dogs and only 320 kennels and Delhi activists noting few compliant centers and underfunded per-dog payments for procedures.
- NGOs and experts cite the Animal Welfare Board’s guidance on territorial vacuums and long-term declines in rabies and bites, warn that mass relocation would sever community bonds in places like schools, and say legal review petitions are being prepared.